Dr Misty Adoniou is an Associate Professor in Language, Literacy and TESOL at the University of Canberra. She has received numerous teaching awards, including a National Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning and the 2014 Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence.

She was a lead writer for the national English as an Additional Language Teachers Resource which accompanies the Australian Curriculum and has served on several national advisory boards in Australia the Federal government’s Equity and Diversity Advisory Group and the Orientation Consultative Committee advising the Federal government on the settlement needs of refugees.

She believes in the advocacy power of professional voices and the importance of professional associations in corralling that strength. She has served as the President of two national teachers associations – TESOL Greece, and the Australian Council of TESOL Associations. She is currently on the board of Directors of TESOL International, an affiliation of 105 teachers associations around the globe.

Her most recent research projects have been curriculum reviews conducted for the International Baccalaureate Organisation and the International Organisation for Migration. She also works closely with schools around the world leading professional learning in spelling, grammar and writing, most recently in the UK, Hong Kong and Greece.

The spirit and the substance of teaching – staying motivated and enthused

During this conference we are learning many new strategies for making English learning accessible and engaging for our students. But our own wellbeing as teachers is an important piece in the puzzle of effective teaching.

This presentation is a reminder of what is great about teaching, why we became English teachers and how to stay passionate about the job.

I will present a framework through which to understand our feelings about our work – and to help us manage the emotional challenges we sometimes feel. The framework consists of two broad concepts – the ‘pneuma’ and the ‘pragma’ of teaching. ‘Pneuma’ encompasses the spirit and vision of teaching. ‘Pragma’ encompasses the tangible substance or the enactment of teaching.

Teaching grammar authentically

‘Grammar’ is a big field. Which parts of grammar are the really useful parts for classroom teachers? And how do we teach grammar in meaningful ways?

In this presentation I talk about grammar as a tool for creativity, and demonstrate ways in which we can teach English grammar through authentic literature. These strategies combine the beauty and power of the ‘real language’ of good literature, whilst simultaneously paying explicit attention to the grammar of those texts.

Using authentic children’s or teenager literature in the classroom increases engagement and enjoyment and gives a real purpose to learning English.